Electrical power outages occur for a number of reasons including severe weather causing damage to the electrical power distribution and/or transmission systems, mechanical failures or wildlife interfering with system components. Most of the causes of outages cannot be prevented and may only be repaired after the outage occurs. Some wildlife associated problems, however, may be preventable.
Squirrels, for example, frequently traverse the elevated electrical power lines and utility poles and may climb onto the lines and equipment, such as the transformers mounted on utility poles to change voltage levels, electrical conductors, capacitors, inductors, switches, relays, surge arresters, insulators (such as porcelain or ceramic insulators). An insulated bushing, for example, may be positioned atop the transformer where the electrical power line connects to the transformer. Unfortunately, a potential difference or voltage exists between the electrical lines and the transformer that may cause an electrical short and electrocute the squirrel if the squirrel simultaneously contacts the transformer and the electrical line. This may damage expensive equipment and cause a localized power outage that may require expensive and time-consuming repairs and extended electrical outages. In other cases, such localized power outages may cascade on the electric power grid and cause more wide-spread and costly electrical outages.
Several devices have been utilized to eliminate or reduce the wildlife problem. A wildlife protection guard, known as the Electrostatic Animal Guard manufactured by 3M, is an example of a device that has been successfully employed for this purpose. The wildlife protection guard, however, is often difficult, dangerous and labor intensive to install on insulators of an energized and elevated electrical power distribution and/or transmission system (hereinafter “distribution system”). Generally, such an installation requires that a utility lineman or line-worker be positioned near and at a height level with the insulator. This requires the worker to either climb the utility pole or be raised by an aerial lift to install each wildlife protection guard, assuming that ground obstructions and/or electrical equipment installations at the site allow for such access. Once at the proper elevation, the worker loads the wildlife protection guard into a straight tool known as a “shotgun-stick.” Using the shotgun-stick, the worker stabs the wildlife protection guard onto the insulator, such as the insulated bushing of a transformer, and activates a triggering mechanism on the shotgun-stick to release wildlife protection guard.
The shotgun-stick is, by design, incapable of being used with extendable or telescoping poles, which may be referred to as “extendo-sticks,” that extend in length up to 30 feet or so and are commonly employed by line-workers to reach from the ground up to the transformers and electrical lines overhead. Attempts have been made with limited success to fashion tools for attachment to the extendable pole for installing and/or removing the wildlife protection guard from an insulator of a distribution system.
One such attempt included cutting a channel into one end of a block of wood. The block was then taped to a hammer head. A hammer head may be connected to extendable poles and is ordinarily used for replacing blown fuses. The channel in the block of wood would pinch a portion of the wildlife protection guard while the wildlife guard was raised and placed on the insulated bushing on the transformer. This arrangement was unstable, difficult to use and align, and did not adequately support the wildlife protection guard as it was being elevated from the ground.
Another such device, the Animal Guard Applicator, is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,794,495 to Anderson. The device disclosed in the Anderson reference proposes to balance the wildlife protection guard on a rake-like structure stabilized with tines. This device appears to be difficult to manufacture, expensive and not particularly easy to use.